Here's my take on the defining characteristics of SK's writing: <span>Mistrust of the government. In a number of his novels, you can see government organizations as dehumanizing and often a host for evil people. A recurring organization is "The Shop", which you can read about in Firestarter and Dreamcatcher. The Shop is analagous to the CIA, but more secret and more evil. In "The Stand", a government facility destroys the human race through a combination of evil and stupidity; the government also undertakes a long disinformation campaign. In Under the Dome, the town's officials are venal and corrupt. In Hearts in Atlantis, the government is seen as responsible for the Vietnam War.Belief in the power of youth. Perhaps nobody has more awe for the power of youth and especially groups of children than SK. IT, Under the Dome, The Talisman, Black House, Salem's Lot, the Dark Tower series, Apt Pupil, The Body, Carrie, Children of the Corn, Desperation, The Regulators, The Sun Dog... All of these works and more feature children on their own or in groups being the prime movers in the story. Most of the time, children are good in King's work, but not alwaysAn abiding understanding of the small town. King is a small-town person; it's no surprise that he's preparing a musical with John Mellencamp. His work has always embraced the small town with a clear-eyed understanding of both its loveliness and the darker currents that flow underneath.<span>The belief that great evils can be combatted and beaten by "normal" people, and that there is greatness even in the wounded and the beaten. Rose Madder, Jack Sawyer, Charly McGee, Trisha MacFarland, Jake, Eddie, Susannah, Johnny Smith, Stu Redman, Larry Underwood, Ralph Roberts -- just a few of the Everyman and Everywoman characters who discover unknown reserves of courage and power when faced with cosmic evils.</span></span>
